Fire Alarm Functional Testing Checklist

The National Fire Protection Association’s standard for fire alarms is NFPA 72: National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code. The NFPA 72 covers requirements for the installation, performance, testing, inspection, and maintenance of the fire alarm systems. Although visual inspections are normally conducted at the same time as the testing, this article only covers the functional testing requirements. Inspections have their own set of requirements.

The testing intervals vary depending on the equipment. Some items need to be tested monthly, others semi-annually or annually. Most building owners or facility managers can do their own monthly and semi-monthly testing. Ryan Fireprotection is normally called in to handle the more intensive annual fire alarm testing. The following is a checklist of the top 15 items that we test on annual inspections.

For the Control System and Transponder, the following are checked:

Function

Fuses

Interface equipment

Lamps and LEDs

Primary (main) power supply

Fire Alarm Control Unit Trouble Signals

The Supervising Station Alarm transmitters (e.g., DACT, DART, McCulloh, RAT, etc.) are verified to be in working order

Emergency Communication equipment including:

Amplifier/Tone generators

Call-in signal silence

Off-hook indicator

Phone jacks

Phone set

System performance

Secondary (standby) power supply

Uninterruptible power supply (UPS)

Batteries and charger

Batteries are replaced as needed

Conductors are tested for circuit integrity including the device circuit, notification appliance circuit, and the signaling line circuit

The time delay and alarm response are tested for smoke detectors that have alarm verification

Multiplex systems

Ryan Fireprotection has the qualifications and expertise to perform all the required testing and resolve any problems found. Contact Ryan Fireprotection to schedule annual inspections and testing of your alarm system.

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